Preparation
by Destinies Entwined
Summary: Part 3 of a 4-part series.  Read Anticipation and Resolution first!  Ed and Win are moving toward their big day and dealing with the emotions that come with transitioning from being friends to being in love.


Thanks to all the fellow Ed/Win fans who've been following the story! Thank you for your patience, as I have two other Fic WIPs going on for other shows. I'm pretty happy with this. I hope you guys are too! I live for feedback , so please, whether constructive criticisms or love letters, I want to hear from you! The next installment will be the finale! Author Alert me if you want to know when I post the last installment! ^_^ It'll be a BIG one. (Rated M for sure!)

**III: Preparation:**

The scent of breakfast wafted its way upstairs. A pair of golden eyes drifted open to find a blonde head of hair nuzzled into his bare chest. A blush crept onto his face, but slowly faded into a smile as he realized this amazing feeling didn't have to be awkward anymore. This woman, his best friend, would be his wife. He began to relish the notion that waking up to her would, from now on, be a way of life. As Ed attempted to wrap his brain around this new concept, Winry stirred against him and lifted her head. Two sleepy blue eyes peered up at him and smiled.

"That has to be some of the best sleep I have ever gotten," she sighed, following her words with a lazy kiss on his lips. Ed couldn't help but agree. He hummed as he wrapped his arms tighter around her. They lay still a moment, realizing they were still mostly unclothed under the blankets. Ed's stomach let out a loud growl, and Winry laughed.

"Whatever Granny is cooking downstairs _does_ smell delicious, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, I could _definitely_ eat right now," he said looking over toward the bedroom door, and then back at Winry. "Shall we?"

She nodded, cuing him to get out of bed and grab their clothing off the floor. He threw her tank top to her and she got up with a shiver. "It was so cozy in bed. I wish I didn't have to get up."

Ed smiled back at her as she threw the covers back and got out of bed. They finished dressing and made their way downstairs for breakfast.

As the young couple followed the aroma to the kitchen, they were greeted by Pinako with a restrained smirk and a raised brow. They paused cautiously at the sight of her chastising look. Suddenly overwhelmed by the tension in the air, Ed cleared his throat and redirected attention to the food on the table.

"This smells _amazing_, Granny! It's been entirely too long since I've had a home-cooked breakfast!"

Granny turned her back to them as she opened and reached into the refrigerator for the bottle of orange juice. "You could smell it all the way from Winry's room, eh?"

Both he and Winry inwardly panicked for a moment, stuttering and fumbling for words, until they were interrupted by a cackle of laughter from the little old lady as she turned back around to face them.

"You should see the looks on your faces!" she howled, setting the juice down on the table. She gestured for them to sit down. "I couldn't help but give you a bit of a hard time."

Their looks of shock at Granny's jest settled into ones of relief. She continued smiling reminiscently. "Like I said yesterday, I was young and in love once. When I was nineteen, I courted your grandfather," she said glancing at Winry. "I trust you two to make smart decisions and take your time with your budding relationship."

Winry gulped and looked over to Ed who was giving her the same knowing look, "We promise that you can trust us, Granny."

Ed nodded and smiled meekly, as all he could think of was Winry's soft bosom as visions from last night's moment played through his mind. He cleared his throat awkwardly once again and glanced down at his plate. All he could muster, as not to give away his guilty conscience, was pick up the fork and begin shoving the eggs and bacon into his gullet.

"You know, all the emotions you two are going through is only natural," Granny added. "But now's the time to prepare for one of the biggest days of your lives. So you have to stay focused on what needs to be done."

Edward paused thoughtfully and nodded at his elder's words.

After breakfast, they remained seated at the table and Granny had Winry grab some paper and something to write with. They discussed a few of the main points of a wedding celebration. Granny conveniently knew people who could help with things like cooking and decorating.

"This weekend I'd like to take you to East City and do a little dress shopping," Pinako declared with a youthful excitement in her voice. "That was one of the first things your mother and I did when she and your father got engaged."

Winry clapped her hands together grinning from ear to ear, "Absolutely!" She looked down and admired her ring a moment, then beamed at Edward, who suddenly felt a bit warm in the face.

"And speaking of shopping, I need you two to go into town and pick up a couple things, if you would," Granny added, handing Winry a list. She took it and looked at Ed, excited for a nice walk alone with him into town.

O.o ^_^ o.O ^_^ O.o ^_^ o.O

Ed and Winry walked down the road toward town, her arm looped through his. The breeze carried the scent of spring flowers and fresh green grass from the fields. They walked for awhile in content silence, soaking in the beauty of the warm mid-spring day.

"Hey, Win?" Ed gently broke through the calm, glancing down sideways at her rosy face.

"Yeah, Ed?"

"This whole wedding thing…I know we're going to have a lot of people there that we know; it can't be helped. I mean…we've made a lot of friends in our travels…but…"

Winry's eyes peered questioningly at him as she stopped, causing him to falter and turn to meet her gaze. He grimaced as he thought for a moment, grasping to correctly form his words.

"Can we _not_ make this a super formal affair? I have a hard time doing stuffy 'formal' things. You and I are far from stuffy. It's our wedding, shouldn't we feel comfortable? "

She raised a brow at first, and then smiled knowingly. "Well, I never envisioned myself in a ball gown or anything, eating filet mignon, so…sure. I've never been much for formalities either. You're right, Ed. Let's just be us…but a little extra special. Instead of a tux, do you mind wearing a nice suit?"

"Not at all, I was hoping you would say that, actually," he admitted with a relieved smile. He leaned in and kissed her, lingering a moment on her lips as he breathed her in. He pulled away and looked down into the beautiful sea of her eyes. "I knew there was more than one reason you were my best friend. Thank you for being so great."

Winry giggled and took his arm once more, "Any time! C'mon silly, let's get to the market before it closes."

And with that, they continued into town.

O.o ^_^ o.O ^_^ O.o ^_^ o.O

The weekend came and Pinako left Ed and Den at the house with work to do as she and Winry boarded the train for East City.

On the train ride, Winry discussed her and Ed's vision for the wedding with her grandmother, who agreed completely with the idea of it feeling like an "extra special" back yard gathering. They knew Alphonse would be Ed's best man, but Winry pondered about who would stand up for her.

"Granny, I just don't know…I thought of May, because she could very well eventually be my sister-in-law. I also thought of Riza Hawkeye, who was a huge support to Ed and I during the last few years. But I keep coming back to Gracia Hughes, who was like a second mother to me, and we owe her a huge debt of gratitude. Who do I ask?"

"Just listen to your heart. It will tell you, loud and clear, who means the most to you."

After a long silence, Winry took a deep breath and grinned. "Well then, when we get back I need to give Gracia a call…and I'd love for Elicia to be our flower girl!"

Pinako smiled at her granddaughter and nodded, "I'm sure Edward will agree that you made the right choice."

When they got into town, they visited a few different shops, but every seamstress seemed intent on convincing Winry to wear a fancier dress than she intended. Winry tried on a host of gowns, all of them feeling too big, too heavy, and essentially inappropriate for a day spent with all of their family and friends at the Rockbell House.

Winry was becoming a bit exasperated with sales pitches and not finding anything that truly suited her. Finally they ended up at a small dress shop on the outskirts of East City. A kind middle-aged woman of petite stature greeted them and asked Winry what she was looking for in a wedding dress. After listening intently to the bride-to-be, the seamstress began sketching on her pad of paper what Winry dictated to her. About five minutes later, the woman picked up her sketchbook to reveal her interpretation of Winry's description.

"That's it!" She exclaimed. "That's beautiful, and if it's made with light, gauze-like material, it'll be so comfortable to move around in all day!"

Winry handed the sketch to Pinako to look over. The dress was a simple A-line gown with an empire waist, a sweetheart bust, and hand-stitched shoulder straps. The skirt was comprised of a few flowing layers of seemingly light summer-weight material with some ruching around the waistline. It was simple, yet elegant…comfortable, yet immensely feminine.

"It's beautiful…and very much you, Winry, my dear," she affirmed. "You will be stunning in this dress."

The seamstress took Winry's measurements and wrote down everything she needed to know. They paid a deposit on the dress and made an appointment to return in one month for her first fitting. It was late in the afternoon as they boarded the train home. Pinako and Winry couldn't help but smile as they imagined what she would look like in the dress in the sketch.

"Edward is going to simply die when he sees you in that gown, Winry. He won't know what to do with himself!" she laughed just like she had earlier that morning.

"You take a lot of pride in giving Ed a hard time, don't you, Granny," Winry chuckled but her smile quickly faded. "But, you know…he's finally coming out of his shell with me. He's being honest with himself…"

Winry trailed off in thought before finding the words she needed to continue. "He's been through so much in the last ten years, and the last few years in particular, he's really grown into…a man."

They both sat silently as they considered the idea of the little golden-mopped boy, no longer a boy, but a young adult. He had finally come into his own; finding courage not only for those he loved, but also for himself.

"I love him, Granny. And though we've already spent most of our nineteen years together as friends, he's going to be with me for countless more years. Please try to be a little nicer to him. He's worked so hard to get to where he is in his life."

Pinako sighed, "Old habits are hard to break, but I will promise only to give him a hard time if he really deserves it. He's got a mouth on him, that one."

"That's true. But as his future wife, it's _my_ job to put him in his place…"

"Which you do very well, I might add," Granny smirked.

They laughed together as the train sped down the rails towards Resembool.

O.o ^_^ o.O ^_^ O.o ^_^ o.O

It was late and the night was clear and calm. Winry had decided to grab a bottle of wine she had been saving for his return for about a year now. It was given to her by Gracia Hughes the last time she had visited Central. All she knew was that it was older than her. Gracia had told Winry that Maes would want her "to have it for a special occasion." SHe had forgotten all about it until Gracia had reminded Winry of it during their phone call earlier.

So after Pinako retired for the evening, and Ed had gone to take a shower, Winry had taken the liberty to set out a couple of chairs on the balcony outside, a small table with the bottle, two glasses and a plate with some chocolate-covered strawberries she had made earlier.

She relished Ed's reaction to the romantic, moonlit setting. Ed had comfortable shorts and a t-shirt on as he had walked out onto the balcony, still towel-drying his hair. He paused, his eyes glimmered with surprise at her uncharacteristically sentimental gesture.

Winry smiled as she held out a glass of the fruity crimson elixir. "After all these years, growing up together, we still remain by each other's side."

She handed him the delicate vessel. He stared into the glass, then up at her as she continued. "We're adults now, Ed. It's still hard to wrap my head around. But we will have each other for our adulthood, too…Here in this place we call home. I wanted to share a moment like this, to get a taste of what the rest of our life might feel like."

Winry took the second glass in hand as Ed stepped toward her, draping the towel over the back of a chair. He raised his glass to hers. "I've never been much of a wine drinker, but this is a better time than ever to try it…" He chuckled lightly to himself, "You're right, Win…this feels so…_grown up_."

They laughed softly together as they clinked their glasses and toasted wordlessly to each other. There was nothing but the sound of them inhaling the fragrance of the wine just before it hit their lips, followed by the faint sipping sounds reverberating in their glasses. The potent liquid smoothed over their tongues like berry velvet. The acidity piqued their noses and the backs of their throats as it left their palates as easily as it entered. The sweet grape flavor lingered a moment as the sounds of swallowing gently cut through the night air.

"That's a lot better than I expected," Ed remarked with a satisfied sigh. He sat down as noticed the plate of strawberries. His eyes widened. "You made these?"

Winry gave her fiancé a confirming "Mm-hmm," and sat down in the chair beside him, grabbing one of her confections. She took a bite and chewed, following it with a sip of wine. Her eyes slid shut as a host of aromas and flavors danced on her tongue.

Ed watched as her face exuded unadulterated pleasure. In the back of his mind, he began to devise a way to elicit that look from her himself. _That is an amazing look on her face. _It finally occurred to him that maybe he should see what all the fuss is about. He followed suit, bringing a strawberry to his lips.

He instantly understood why Winry made the face she did. He couldn't say a word until he finished consuming the delectable treat he held in his hand. "That…was _delicious._"

Edward and Winry sat on the balcony of Winry's workshop, quietly gazing at the silvery three-quarter moon and the twinkling stars. The wine had found it's way to their heads just a little bit, and they savored the incredibly relaxed feeling. He took her hand in his as it rest on the small table between them. He turned to look over at her, as the moonlight cast it's glow upon her soft face.

"You know, Winry," Ed thought aloud, "even yesterday as I proposed to you, I felt like the timid little boy who had a crush on you. But, just in the last day alone, I am finally beginning to realize how amazing this all is. With all the fuss over being ready to jump into a marriage and preparing so quickly for a wedding…I was a little freaked out yesterday."

He gave her hand a squeeze.

"But I want you to know…I _am_ ready for this…" He leaned in and genteelly kissed her hand.

"I'm ready for _you._"


End file.
